The medieval aqueduct over the gorge
At the southern end of the Valle Umbra, on a hill at the foot of the wooded Monteluco, Spoleto is one of the most fascinating and elegant towns in Umbria, rich in history from Roman times, when it was the colony of Spoletium, to the Middle Ages, when it was the capital of a powerful Lombard duchy, and then part of the Papal States. Its historic centre is a harmonious mix of Roman remains, such as the Arch of Drusus and the Roman theatre, Romanesque churches, Renaissance palaces and steep lanes, crowned by the massive Rocca Albornoziana, a fortress built in the 1360s by Cardinal Albornoz to a design by the architect Gattapone, which later became a prison and today houses a museum.
Below the fortress, the Ponte delle Torri, the Bridge of Towers, is one of the most spectacular medieval monuments in Italy: an aqueduct-bridge about 230 metres long and 80 metres high, with ten tall Gothic arches resting on massive pillars, which crosses the deep gorge of the Tessino stream, linking the town to Monteluco. Built probably in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, perhaps on Roman foundations, it carried water to the town and served as a passage, and it was admired by Goethe during his journey to Italy in 1786. The walk across the bridge, suspended over the gorge, with a view of the town, the fortress and the woods, is unforgettable, and from the other side paths climb to the sacred woods of Monteluco, with its hermitages and convents.
Tip: check that the bridge is open to walkers before you go; the walk around the Rocca, the "Giro della Rocca", offers splendid views of the bridge.
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